Median house price hits record high in October but volumes fall away (Update 2)

The median house sale price rose NZ$5,000 to a record high of NZ$355,000 in October from September, but volumes were "disappointing" and fell 6% to 6,091 over the month from 6,464, the Real Estate Institute of New Zealand (REINZ) said. (Update 2 includes 'days to sell', charts.) The median sale price was up from NZ$335,000 in October 2008 when there were 4,469 sales during the month. The October 2009 median is above the previous high of NZ$352,000 in November 2007. "The steady return of property values is a positive sign, confirming property as the very best investment," REINZ President Peter McDonald said. "Around the country, median values have risen in seven out of 12 districts compared with October 2008 prices. The largest gains were Wellington, significantly up by 12.46% to NZ$415,000, followed by Canterbury/Westland up 6.16% to NZ$310,000 and Auckland up 5.08% to NZ$455,000. The two largest drops in property values were at either end of the country: Northland, down 7.73% to NZ$310,000 and Southland down 8.94% to NZ$180,750," McDonald said. "The rises aren't, in most cases, dramatic, but slow and steady over the past few months as confidence returns to the market. For the first time we are over the peak of prices in 2007 which is a very reassuring milestone," he said. McDonald said another "positive picture" of the market was the REINZ's 'days to sell' figure, which fell to 31 in October from 33 in September. "I believe the market will firm even further with the better economic news we're hearing more and more frequently," McDonald said. Stratified measure (see chart below) The REINZ's new stratified house price measure, which was developed with help from the Reserve Bank, shows house prices in October were still 3.1% down from the November 2007 peak. The index rose 1.3% over the month. The new measure was designed to compete with Quotable Value's (QV) figures and shows an average of sales prices for common groups of houses, as opposed to the median price. See all of our REINZ and real estate charts here.